New 50" tv plans

bigaudiofanatic

My Dynex has served its purpose and it's time to upgrade. Planning on buying in the fall or around the holiday season. I know new models will be coming out so it's a good time to buy.

Must be:
50"+
120Hz
Under 1200 bucks

The brands that I have been looking at are Samsung and Panasonic, fallowed by Dynex yet again.
I do not watch movies everyday however when I do; it's usually 2 or 3 in a row. Usually in a dark room or very low light. I want good color balance and good dark levels as a lot of my movies have night scenes. Heat is not an issue however a LCD or LED would probably be looked at over a plasma.

Thoughts on what models to look at?

Also on the same upgrade plan I am looking at the Denon DBP-1611 as a upgrade from my 1610, is this worth the price?

chumlie

I would go plasma. Panasonic 50'' ST50 can be had under $1200. Just my opinion.

EndersShadow

Given that you watch in a dark room, I would not recommend LED or LCD. Plasma is king of black levels, and has just as good color levels especially if you have very little to no glare issues due to watching at night or in a dark room. You will be able to get a very good quality brand plasma that is BIGGER than the LCD's at your price point.

120 hz is a gimmick IHMO and I cant stand to play ANY kind of video games or even watch movies on my Dads Samsung 120hz LCD. When I stop moving the joystick the image keeps moving for a second longer on screen making playing online video games impossible. Also the movies just look a bit too cartoony IMHO.

Now the 60" Plasma I bought has none of these issues and I was able to get a closeout deal on a 60" Panasonic ST30 for 1500 bucks shipped to my door. The 50" ST30 if still out there should be right around that price point, if not the 55" if you can find it.

AsSiMiLaTeD

I also recommend a plasma TV. Unless you have alot of light in your room plasma is going to be the best picture in your price range. I can't think of a single LED tv below $1500 that looks as good as a plasma.

bigaudiofanatic

My dynex which is 60Hz is a joke especially during the dark knight, you can see the refresh at night scenes so I need to go better. I think the one your thinking of is the 240Hz, which I can not stand to look at, the movement feels artificial.

That panasonic is pretty nice, any thought if it the piece will drop or is that a newer model? I agree, plasma's blacks are outstanding, our plasma in the living room is in a well light area and the new anti glare on it is great.

EndersShadow

bigaudiofanatic wrote: »

That panasonic is pretty nice, any thought if it the piece will drop or is that a newer model? I agree, plasma's blacks are outstanding, our plasma in the living room is in a well light area and the new anti glare on it is great.

The ST30, GT30, VT30 are last years models. The ST50, GT50, VT50 are THIS years models.

I would look to find a TC-P50ST30 or TC-P55ST30 model (can you tell I have been looking for a bit as I memorized the model numbers lol). The TC-P60ST30 and TC-P65ST30 will be out of your price range unless a store has a floor model for sale (check local Best Buy's to see if they do).

The link will show you that there are 3 55" ST30's left new for 1100 bucks.

The main difference between the ST30 and GT30 models is the inclusion of THX mode which is NOT in the ST30 models. Otherwise many reviewers couldnt tell a difference between the two models on the reviews I looked at. The GT30 did edge the ST30 out but ONLY when side by side could any real differences be told.

Drenis

bigaudiofanatic wrote: »

My dynex which is 60Hz is a joke especially during the dark knight, you can see the refresh at night scenes so I need to go better. I think the one your thinking of is the 240Hz, which I can not stand to look at, the movement feels artificial.

You can disable motion enhancement on every TV out there that I've used, can't speak for your Dynex.

I also recommend you look at Plasma over LCD.

kidglove13

FWIW
My cousin has worked for HBO studios in NYC for the last 10 years or so
When it came time for the studio to get all of it monitors and panels upgraded the HBO engineers brought in the top flat panel Manufacturers like Samsung, Panasonic etc.
Since certain parts of the studio had different conditions than other parts where some places an LCD would work better and vice verses a plasma would work better in other areas and also depending on each departments needs as well.
The HBO engineers narrowed it down to 2 manufacturers for their needs
Samsung for LCD and Panasonic for Plasma as being the best, they believed for each panel.
I know it is only an opinion, but I think those guys know there stuff
Since my space has alot of natural light I had to go with LED LCD.
But in your case it sounds like a Plasma is in order.
The amount of natural light you have in the room will dictate what type of panel or else you wont be able to watch any type of TV during the day if it is a plasma in a very bright sunlit room, I tested it and it sucks big time even with window shades, even though they do help, this is just an opinion and what I have experienced, others may have different experiences.
Like others said I had to spent $1500 +/- on my Samsung 47" LED LCD to get close to Plasma picture quality and it still is not quite as good.
I would not waste money on a Dynex, just an opinion

bigaudiofanatic

Just watched Cnet's review on the panasonic ST50, and I have to say it looks like a winner. Just have to keep an eye on the price and see how far it drops. Also will keep an eye on the ST30 if I can snag one for a good price. Are the life spans about the same as what they use to be for plasma's?

kidglove13

bigaudiofanatic wrote: »

Just watched Cnet's review on the panasonic ST50, and I have to say it looks like a winner. Just have to keep an eye on the price and see how far it drops. Also will keep an eye on the ST30 if I can snag one for a good price. Are the life spans about the same as what they use to be for plasma's?

You cant go wrong with the Panasonic, I would also check out Crutchfield for pricing as well, they can put you on automatic price alert if the pricing drops for any given model you are looking at
I bought my last Samsung from them and got a great deal.
I was told that the life span of either a LED LCD or Plasma are comparable which was something in the order of 5000 hours IIRC
I think that life span has increased over the last few years with flat panels, I could be wrong though

chumlie

Panasonic and LG claim 100,000 hrs till half life on there new TV's.

kidglove13

chumlie wrote: »

Panasonic and LG claim 100,000 hrs till half life on there new TV's.

It is 50,000 to 100,000 total life span depending on how the set is used
Panasonic 100,000 half life while the others say 100,000 full life on most LCD and Plasma
But there is speculation about these numbers because they are double that of a couple of years ago
and are based on mathematical dissipation of phosphor in the screens over time from what I read
It all really depends on how you use your set.

chumlie

Just do a google search '' lifespan of plasma tv ''. Thats what there claiming. You'll probably replace the tv before it starts looseing anything due to new tech coming out every year. 3d 1080p now. Whats 5 to 8 yrs gonna bring. Just sayin. Wasn't a thing wrong with 8 or 9 yr old 55'' Mitsubishi i just replaced.

kidglove13

I agree ^^^^
It all really depends on how you use it and how often
If you are into gaming you will cut that life span in half.

Zeros

Hey BAF:

http://www.paulstv.com/Plasma-Televisions/Panasonic-TCP50UT50.asp

TPC50U $899 with free shipping.

Edit: Never mind, not 120hz.